Many people talk of themselves as being investors. When I hear someone mentioning that he or she is “investing” some money I always ask them: “Are you investing or trading?” I usually get people confused with this little question. The fact is: Most people don’t know what investing is and they cannot tell the difference between investing and saving on one hand and trading and gambling on the other hand. So let’s look at the four most common types of what you can do with your money if you don’t spend it:
Saving
Saving is about preserving what you have – without the intention of gaining anything. Saving money means you put money away in a safe place, so you can use it later to either invest it, spend it or do whatever you like with it. It does not mean exposing your assets to any type of risk at all. Saving could be in the form of a savings account, cash, gold or whatever does not put your money at risk. An investment fund or a 401K is NOT saving money. Investment funds – like the name suggests is investing.
Investing
Investing has the idea of long term natural growth associated with it. Investing money means giving your money away with a certain amount of risk and the chance for a certain profit. Often the exact amount of the profit is not known in advance. So is the risk that you might lose your money or a part of it. In general an investment is a commitment to convert liquid assets into more illiquid types of assets for a minimum of 2 years or more. Yes, investing is a long-term commitment and something that has made many people unspeakably rich. Investing is not for nervous or paranoid people. It is for the smart and bold. If you are paranoid, you should be saving instead of investing. If you are looking to make quick cash you should be trading.
Trading
Trading is more similar to dealing in any particular goods. There game is buying low and selling high – whether you are dealing in textiles, watches or stocks. The time horizon for a trader is short term. A trade can be from a few minutes to a few months. It doesn’t really matter what the time frame is. What matters is your intention and mind set. If you strive to buy low and sell high, you are a trader – not an investor.
Don’t get excited over your trades. If you a seeking pleasure and you find that trading is actually fun and giving you a certain kick, then you are not trading – you are gambling
There are different intentions associated with different types of actions. They could be described as below:
Mindset: Preserving
Action: Saving
Predictability: High
Risk: Low
Potential Reward: Safety
Mindset: Growing
Action: Investing
Predictability: moderate
Risk: moderate
Potential Reward: long-term appreciation
Mindset: Making money
Action: trading
Predictability: low
Risk: high
Potential Reward: high return
Mindset: Excitement
Action: gambling
Predictability: very low
Risk: very high
Potential Reward: loss
When you go from Saving down to gambling with each step predictability is decreasing and risk is increasing.
So when you think about investing your money, think of your goal first – then decide what your strategy should be.
Steve Brzinski writes for several magazines and e-zines. Visit his stock market investment site at http://www.stockmarket-investor.com/.
Article Source: ezinearticles.comThis article contains a list of money saving and investment tips. They are in no particular order and just appear as the author thinks of them
Credit cards can be a great money saving vehicle, as long as you pay them off on time. If you purchase an expensive item on the first of the month, then typically you will have 30-60days before you start paying interest on the purchase. This gives your hard earned cash a little bit more time to earn interest in a high interest savings account.
Credit Cards
Most credit card companies offer some type of reward system, this is typically equivalent 0.5-1% cashback. It is best to choose cards that give you the rewards in real money, rather than in tokens or points for savings on some other goods and services. Otherwise instead of pocketing a couple of hundred pounds in cash you may up spending out on that all new lean mean grilling machine as you have earnt 50% off through George Formans credit card company….
Credit Cards – Company Expenses
If you end up claiming a lot of company expenses then try to put all purchases on your credit card, and make sure you claim for the expenses as soon as possible. If your company is quick at refunding expenses you may find that you get the cash before you have to pay off the credit card. Yet more interest to be earned in that high interest savings account. Further more, if you have a credit card with a reward points scheme you will earn money on expenditure that isn’t even yours!
High Interest Savings Accounts
There are a number of accounts that have been recently advertised with headline interest rates. 7-10% interest is now becoming more common place. However these deals aren’t quite as good as they seem. You can usually only put a maximum of £”50 a month into the account, and at the end of the year it will typically be swept into a current account or equivalent. This means you have to keep on your toes and make sure you swap to another account once the initial interest rate period expires.
Now what about that maximum investment per month? Even if you invested £250 a month for a year into a 10% account you will only end up earning £135 pounds in compounded interest. If you are a tax payer this is reduced to £105, or a high taxpayer would earn a measly £81 pounds. Okay, so it is better than nothing, but it is hardly a massive pay out by the banks and building societies.
You will probably be better off in the long run by choosing a good, consistently high paying online savings account, such as that offered by Nationwide or Halifax. These pay out in the region of 4.5%-5%, but their annual investment limit is normally around £50,000 a year, rather than £3,000 a year. Also with a proven track record of high interest rates you wont have to chop and change your accounts every year. Saving you lots of time and hassle.
Cash ISA’s
Invest in cash ISA’s! Especially if you are a higher rate taxpayer, but even if you are exempt from taxation you will find that they offer a good rate of interest, and will protect your interest earnings if you end up paying tax in the next few years. Also don’t forget that you can only save £3000 a year into a cash mini-ISA, so you need to make sure you make good use of your tax free savings each and every year to be able to build up a good tax free nest egg.
Mortgages
If you are on a variable rate mortgage see if you can tie yourself into a discounted mortgage. Banks and building societies are offering some eye-popping rates at the moment, but make sure you checkthe small print. A 2% interest rate in the first year may sound great, but check that it doesn't increase to 7 or 10% interest in the 2nd to 5th year.
Some financial research has shown that statistically you are most likely to be best off with a 2 year fixed rate mortgage, and then remortgage every 2 years. This may seem like a lot of hassle but it could save you hundreds of pounds each year.
Visit http://www.whatprice.co.uk for more money saving advice.
Article Source: ezinearticles.com|
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